Night of Silence

If we want to be bearers of Christ's kingdom of peace, we must be willing to pay in person, to suffer misunderstanding, rejection and persecution in first person. The sword of the conqueror does not build peace but the sword of the sufferer who knows how to gift his life. " ~ Pope Benedcit XVI

"The best kind of friend is the one with whom you can spend time without having to say anything. You can just share the moment and enjoy each other's company, knowing your relationship is deeper than the spoken word." ~ Pope Francis

"The Spirit of God is a spirit of peace, and he speaks and acts in peace and gentleness, never in tumult and agitation. What’s more, the motions of the Spirit are delicate touches that don’t make a great noise and can penetrate our spiritual consciousness only if we have within ourselves a sort of calm zone of silence and peace. If our inner world is noisy and agitated, the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit will find it very difficult to be heard. If we want to recognize and follow the Spirit’s motions, it is of the greatest importance to maintain a peaceful heart in all circumstances." — Fr. Jacques Philippe

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Whoever cultivates the spirit of silence acquires wisdom and attains to peace of heart.  In the individual soul silence develops strength and power.  In groups of persons joined together, whether naturally as in the family, or by vocation as in religion, where this spirit of silence is observed, fervor reigns, peace resides, all bitterness and uncharitableness disappear, and the works done are fruitful and blessed by God. ~ Father Edward Leen, C.S.SP.

“Can those who do not know silence ever attain truth, beauty, or love? Do not wisdom, artistic vision, and devotion spring from silence, where the voice of God is heard in the depth of the human heart?” ~ Cardinal Sarah

You Are Mine

Authentic silence is not emptiness. Things come to us in the silence. We hear new languages. We are visited by penetrating peace, insight, God Himself, His wisdom, light, His perception and understanding. In authentic silence we hear new sounds and enter new worlds. In silence we come to know our own hearts." ~ Sister Anne Marie Walsh

I used to think when people were silent they had nothing to say, until I realized they were probably just listening to their hearts.

~ Fr. John H. Kappe, Archdiocese of Galveston/Houston

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"A life without a lonely place, that is, a life without a quiet centre, easily becomes destructive. When we cling to the results of our actions as our only way of self-identification, then we become possessive and defensive and tend to look at our fellow human beings more as enemies to be kept at a distance than as friends with whom we share the gifts of life...It is in solitude that we can discover that being is more important than having and that we are worth more than the results of our efforts...In solitude we become aware that our worth is not the same as our usefulness." ~ Henri Nouwen, Show Me The Way

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Silence is our constant ignored companion. It never goes away. It is us who go away from it because it reminds us of the neglected inner garden that is our soul. ~ Dr. David Brenner

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"Though there's a majestic and powerful beauty on the surface of the ocean, there's even more beauty when you dive beneath the waves - luxuriant seaweed swaying gracefully ... , small fish darting here and there, ... a world that's quiet and deep. When you dive beneath the surface things of GOd, you also discover an endless calm - a world of divine liefe that is quiet and deep. There, in the depths, God will reveal a quiet and gentle kind of interior beauty." ~ Joni Eareckson Tada, Holiness in Hidden Places

In quietness and confidence shall be your strength. ~ Isaiah 30:15

"Father Jean-Pierre de Caussade in the book, The Sacrament of the Present Moment, talks about the “realization that every event in our lives, from the most ordinary to the most spectacular, are all manifestations of God’s will for us. It teaches us to experience every moment—such as this very moment as you read these words—as a holy sacrament because God is at work in it. As we acquire this holy practice, God becomes much more real to us, much more a part of our lives, and a true Companion on our journey.”

~ Cate Perry, from: Be Silent and Mindful of God

Noise dissipates and fatigues the soul; in silence we gather our forces. Silence restores order and brings peace, which St. Augustine defines as "the tranquility of order". Without discipline of holy silence Christ cannot reign as King in our heart!

~ From Holy Silence, The Secret of the Saints

The Spirit of God is soft and gentle like a small voice or a light breeze. It is the spirit of love." ~ Henri Nouwen,‬ Here and Now

Give Me a Quiet Mind

When winds are blowing, waves are rising, falling
And all the air is full of dust and spray;
When voices, like to sea birds’ plaintive calling,
Confuse my day;

Then, then I know Thee, Lord of highest heaven
In newborn need discover Thee, and find
Nought can discomfort him to whom is given
A quiet mind.

When hopes have failed, and heavy sadness crusheth,
And doubt and fear would weave their deadly spell,
Then thought of Thee my troubled spirit husheth;
And all is well.

In midnight hours when weariness ignoreth
Heaven’s starry host, and battle wounds are mine,
Then Thy right hand uplifteth and outpoureth
Love’s oil and wine.

O Blessed Lord, beyond the moment’s sorrow
I see above, beneath, before, behind–
Eternal Love. Give me today, tomorrow,
A quiet mind.

(From the collected poems of Amy Carmichael)

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“If an ear is to grow or a flower blossom, there are times which cannot be forced; for the birth of a human being, nine months are required; to write a book or a worthy piece of music, years must often be spent in patient searching. This is also the law of the spirit… To encounter the mystery takes patience, inner purification, silence and waiting.” (Pope St. John Paul II; General Audience, July 26, 2000)

"You need to release the load that God never meant for you to carry, and focus on what He has truly called you to do."

Let Go ... Let God

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Every gift from God [like silence] invites us to greater intimacy with God - not as something we achieve or earn but something we may simple accept. The steps we take in response to the gifts we receive are how we say yes to God's love.

~ Carl McColman, from the book "Befriending Silence"

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Constant One

God cannot be found in noise and agitation. His true power and love are revealed in what is hardly perceptible, in the gentle breeze that requires stillness and quiet to detect. In silence, God listens to us. In silence, listen to Him. In silence, God speaks to our souls and the power of His word is enough to transform our very being. We cannot speak to God and to the world at the same time. We need the sacred space that silence creates in order to turn our undivided attention toward God even if it is only for a few precious moments of our day.

Many respected persons made it a practice to rise in the night or in the quiet hours of the morning to seek inspiration that comes in silence, Plato, Einstein, and even Jesus Himself. We all should find a time and a place to be in silent prayer. In the Carmelite tradition, the spiritual life is said to have two aims: the first is about our love of God and the second is about God’s love for us. The practice of silence facilitates both of these aims.

We are meant to taste in our hearts and experience in our minds, not only after death but in this life, something of the power of the Divine Presence and the bliss of heavenly glory. From this point of departure in faith, silence becomes more than a practice. It is a form of prayer – a prayer of listening, waiting, and receptivity. It is a prayer that anticipates and expects intimate communion; it believes in the possibility and holds in high esteem the value of being in relationship with God. The value of this type of prayer is difficult for our productivity-oriented culture to grasp. It is hard for us to see that a prayer in which “being” predominates over “doing” and that a prayer in which nothing happens is a prayer in which everything happens. It is in silence that we make the interior transition from darkness to light. We become more aware of God’s presence within us, of Him speaking to us, of the hidden things which He wishes to reveal to us.

Through silence we become more deeply aware of the beauty, unity, goodness and truth all around us and within us. Through faith our whole outlook on life is changed. What used to appear as ordinary, temporal events, become reflections of these four attributes of God. These happenings become messages through which He speaks intimately to our hearts; moments of sublime personal contact with Infinite Love Itself.

Listening to the word in silence, faith and love, we hear the secret to our happiness and authentic personal fulfillment. Only in this do we truly begin to fill that deep void and satisfy the longing that consumes us as human persons.

The gift of love, however, only comes to complete fruition when it is embraced by our response of love. God gives Himself entirely to us without reserve. His one request is that we return His love in like manner. “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Matt 22:37-39, NASB). This is also expressed in the Carmelite tradition through the first aim of the spiritual life that we offer God a pure and holy heart, free of the actual stain of sin, accomplished both with God’s grace and our own efforts of virtuous living.

The human heart in its brokenness tends to cling readily to those things among which it habitually finds itself. Our thoughts feed our emotions and our desires. So if we are placing ourselves most frequently in the noises of the world that speak to values contrary to God’s way, our desires will easily be lead astray. Ensnared by these misled desires, we cannot be free to love God with our whole being. The person who persistently seeks noise and diversion betrays his own insecurity. When we do not possess the changeless One, we seek constant change. The person who has encountered God, and seeks after Him in love, will return to the quiet places of silence where the sweetness of His presence still lingers.

“The Lord is in His holy temple, let all the earth keep silence before Him.” (Habakkuk 2:20)

"by Sister Mary Clare, O.C.D.Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles"

"Behind the silence breathes the Father. The solitude is inhabited by a presence, and above us waits rest and liberation." ~ Ignacio Larranaga

"The quiet interlude, the silent pause, can be a setting for God to speak. A spirit of receptivity to God in that silence can be a catalyst to grace. Perhaps God hides Himself in these silent interludes waiting to be heard." ~ Fr. Donald Haggerty

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Traditionally we are taught, and instinctively we long, to give where it is needed - and immediately. Eternally, woman spills herself away in driblets to the thirsty, seldom being allowed the time, the quiet, the peace, to let the pitcher fill up to the brim. ~ Anne Morrow Lindbrgh, from The Gift of the Sea

" Mary, set the Lord before her. He was her portion. She was not shaken when Martha got mad, or when Judas questioned her. She was at the Lord’s feet, where a disciple was meant to be."~ Danielle Cevallos

"But when I see women that do things out of ‘servitude’ and not out of service,” said Pope Francis. “And that it is not understood well what a woman ought to do. Can she be valued more?" ~ Pope Francis

Our intimate relationships remain safe and superficial until we can be with the other in silence – not the passive aggressive forms of this that are so common but the open and trusting posture of presence that is so essential for genuine intimacy. And of course we also remain a stranger to our own being until we can simply be with ourselves in silence. ~ Dr. David Brenner

Silence plays a uniquely important role in any deep engagement with oneself, others, life, or the transcendent. It is the doorway through which we must pass on the journey from living on the surface of life to living out of our depths. ~ Dr. David Brenner

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"Darkness does not hide You, distances do not seperate You. There is no interference in the world that can keep me from You. You are with me. I go out on the street and You walk with me. I go to work and You are at my side. While I sleep, You watch over my dreams. You are not a detective who spies; You are a Father who takes care of me. At times I feel like shouting: I am a child lost in the forest, I am alone, no one loves me. Soon I hear Your response: I am with you, be not afraid."

~ Inacia Larranaga

Spending time alone with me can be difficult discipline, because it goes against the activity addiction of this age, you may appear to be doing nothing but actually you are participating in battles going on within spiritual Realms, you are Waging War not with the weapons of the world, but with Heavenly weapons, which have divine power to demolish strongholds, living close to me is a sure defense against evil. ~ Jesus Calling

Come ...

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"How often do we treat God as if he were a parking meter? I put in some coins, and I get a slip of paper that gives me permission to park, or I get good weather or good results on a test. The psychologist asked us to think of images of God that did not use him as a thing. The only image I could come up with was Jesus and me sitting on a park bench enjoying a beautiful sunset together. Nothing is said. We enjoy each other and the sunset without words. We don’t demand anything of the other. We communicate and are united without speaking." ~ Sister Sheryl Frances Chen

Self-respect cannot be hunted. It cannot be purchased. It is never for sale. It cannot be fabricated out of public relations. It comes to us when we are alone, in quiet moments, in quiet places, when we suddenly realize that, knowing the good, we have done it; knowing the beautiful, we have served it; knowing the truth we have spoken it. ~Whitney Griswold

You Speak

"...almost all of us know God only through hearsay and the more open we are to his silence and to our own silence, the more we truly begin to know him." ~ Pope Benedict XVI

Go In Peace

When no one listens
To the quiet trees
When no one notices
The sun in the pool.
Where no one feels
The first drop of rain
Or sees the last star
Or hails the first morning
Of a giant world
Where peace begins
And rages end:
One bird sits still
Watching the work of God:
One turning leaf,
Two falling blossoms,
Ten circles upon the pond.
One cloud upon the hillside,
Two shadows in the valley
And the light strikes home.
Now dawn commands the capture
Of the tallest fortune,
The surrender
Of no less marvelous prize!
Closer and clearer
Than any wordy master,
Thou inward Stranger
Whom I have never seen,
Deeper and cleaner
Than the clamorous ocean,
Seize up my silence
Hold me in Thy Hand!
Now act is waste
And suffering undone
Laws become prodigals
Limits are torn down
For envy has no property
And passion is none.
Look, the vast Light stands still
Our cleanest Light is One!

~ Thomas Merton

Help me to be less fearful of the measure of time, and more fully alive in the time that simply is. Help me to live time, not just to simply use it; to breathe it in, and return it in acts of love and presence. ~ Avis Crowe

"The world and time are the dance of the Lord in emptiness.
The silence of the spheres is the music of a wedding feast.

The more we persist in misunderstanding the phenomena of life,
the more we analyze them out into strange finalities
and complex purposes of our own,
the more we involve ourselves in sadness, absurdity, and
despair.

But it does not matter much,
because no despair of ours can alter the
reality of things,
or stain the joy of the cosmic dance which is always
there.

Indeed we are in the midst of it,
and it is in the midst of us,
for it beats in our very blood, whether we
want it to or not.

Yet the fact remains that we are invited to forget
ourselves on purpose,
cast our awful solemnity to the winds and join in the
general dance."

~ Thomas Merton

My Yoke is Easy

"Set free from human judgement, we should count true only what God sees in us, what He knows, and what He judges. God does not judge as man does. Man sees only the countenance, only the exterior. God penetrates to the depths of our hearts. God does not change as man does. His judgement is the only one upon whome we should rely. How happy we are then, and how peaceful! We are no longer dazzled by appearances, or stirred up by opinions; we are united to the truth and depend upon it alone. I am praised, blamed, treated with indifference, disdained, ignored, or forgotten; none of this can touch me. I will be no less than I am. Men and women want to play at being creator. They want to give me existence in their opinion, but this existence that they give me is nothingness. It is an illusion, a shadow, always following me, behind me, at my side. Is it me or something that belongs to me? No, Yet does not this shadow seem to move with me? No matter: it is not me. So it is with the judgements of men: they would follow me everywhere, paint me, sketch me, make me move according to their whim, and, in the end, give me some sort of existence ... but I am disabused of this error. I am content with a hidden life. How peaceful it is ! Whether I truly live this Christian life of which St. Paul speaks, I do not know, nor can I know with certainty. But I hope that I do, and I trust in God's goodness to help me." ~ Bishop Jacques Benigne Bossuet

"A quiet time isn't about performing for God. It's about being with God." ~ Joanna Weaver

"Nazareth is the place of our hidden, secret life, the veiled life known to God alone. It is a life so deep that there are aspects of it that are, if not hidden from, at least mysterious even to ourselves...if we be saints, ....we will be formed by our hidden and unseen places. Part of the task of maturity for us is to discover and become comfortable with our unseen places." ~ Bonnie Thurston, 'Hidden in God - Discovering the Desert Vision of Charles de Foucauld' (Blessed Charles de Foucauld was beautified on Nov. 13, 2005)

"Passion as prayer is not about energy and volume; it is about being engaged from the heart with the Lord." ~ International House of Prayer

Heavenly Father, even as I diligently study the Bible, remind me it's not about what I know, but Who I know. Help me lay down my weaknesses and embrace your strength. Help me put aside my words and share Your Word. In Jesus' Name, Amen. ~ Liz Curtis Higgs

Happy are we if we love Jesus with that sublime silence. Many a time our love speaks, our love sings, our love expresses itself in various way. But when love increases in our hearts, it tends to become silent. That is when it has reached maturity. It has become so intense and so deep that it cannot be expressed with our dull human language. ~ Excerpts from "Only Jesus." by Luis Martinez, Secrets of the Spirit

Love, and do what you will. If you are silent, be silent out o love. If you must speak, speak out of love. If you censure, censure out of love. If you forebear, forebear out of love. Put love in your heart. Nothing but good can spring from that source. ~ St. Augustine

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Begin with humility, letting go of the temptation to relate to God through clever thoughts or complicated ideas;

Move into silence, finding calmness and rest in God like a baby finds resting on its mother’s breast;

Finally embrace hope, that in the down-to-earth quiet of contemplative prayer we learn to fully trust God.

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Silence in prayer is not something you achieve, it’s something you receive. It’s given to you by grace, and it’s already within you. ~ Carl McColman

Lonely ... but not alone

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May God, not the gifts, be the center of our lives. May the gifts bring Him glory and draw others to hear His still, small voice and draw them into His Presence. In Jesus Name, Amen

Be Still ...

More than a song ...

Prayer is being present to God’s presence. It is words and yet it is more than words. It is a feeling but yet it is even more than a feeling. Prayer is a search for truth. Prayer is saying to God “here I am”. Prayer is saying “I need you. Touch me, form me, direct me, guide me, love me.” ~ Bruce Downes

From the catechism on prayer: " Since the heart of the Son seeks only what pleases the Father, how could the prayer of the children of adoption be centered on the gifts rather than the Giver?"

It is I; do not be afraid.

Still small voice....whisper...

Peace, Be still

So when you're on your knees and answers seem so far away. You're not alone, stop holding on and just be held.

~ God's peace is a quiet heart in a raging storm. ~

"Silence, for the Christian, is not just the absence of speech but also the stillness of soul in which our true self is united with Creator and Father. We become silent in awe and wonder, as we contemplate God within us. It is an experience too rich and delicate for words." ~ Pope Francis

Jesus Himself is the answer to our prayer.

I Need Thee Every Hour

"The silence of God you hear in the midst of storms - can be the deep intimacy of God falling all around you, an intimacy that is beyond words - that will carry you through and beyond this storm." ~ from "Steadfast Love" by Lauren Chandler

“Jesus’ words ‘Pray unceasingly for the strength to survive all that is going to happen and to stand with confidence’ are of crucial importance for us in these days. Prayer should be our first concern. Without prayer even our ‘good busyness’ will lead to our destruction…. Never forget the words: ‘In the world you will have trouble but be brave, I have overcome the world.’ Every time you spend silent time in your prayer room, you celebrate Christ’s victory over the world (over death, over the evil one) and allow yourself to taste already now the peace that comes from this victory. It is so important for the people around you to see that peace of Christ reflected in your eyes, your hands and your words. There is more power in that than all your teaching and organizing. That is the truth we need to keep telling each other.” ~ HenriNouwen

"As we develop the practice of silent prayer in our lives we will grow in faith and learn to trust God more and more. It will become easier as we let our guard down and allow God to love the real us ... " ~ from "God Knows the Real Us" - New Way Today

NOT AT EVERY moment of our lives, Heaven knows, but at certain rare moments of greenness and stillness, we are shepherded by the knowledge that though all is far from right with any world you and I know anything about, all is right deep down. All will be right at last. I suspect that is at least part of what "He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness" is all about. It means righteousness not just in the sense of doing right but in the sense of being right—being right with God, trusting the deep-down rightness of the life God has created for us and in us, and riding that trust the way a red-tailed hawk rides the currents of the air in this valley where we live. I suspect that the paths of righteousness he leads us in are more than anything else the paths of trust like that and the kind of life that grows out of that trust. I think that is the shelter he calls us to with a bale in either hand when the wind blows bitter and the shadows are dark.

Frederick Beuchner
- Originally published in "The Clown in the Belfry"

"In each one of us there is an innate yearning, which can only be discerned and realized when we slow down from our own business and busyness and understand that we all want something more. God speaks in the silence of our hearts. Therefore, you have to “attend with the ear of your heart” to what God is calling you to. " ~ St. Benedict

"A quiet time isn't about performing for God. It's about being with God." ~ Joanna Weaver

“the mysteries of Christ are linked to silence, and only in silence can the word find a place to dwell within us.” ~ Pope Benedict XVI

[The episode of the Magi] "is not a distant story that took place long ago. It is with us now. Here in the sacred Host, he is present before us and in our midst. As at that time, so now he is mysteriously veiled in a sacred silence; as at that time, it is here that the true face of God is revealed." ~ Pope Benedict XVI

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You are the peace of all things calm
You are the place to hide from harm
You are the light that shines in dark
You are the heart's eternal spark
You are the door that's open wide
You are the guest who waits inside
You are the stranger at the door
You are the calling of the poor
You are my Lord and with me still
You are my love, keep me from ill
You are the light, the truth, the way
You are my Saviour this very day.
Amen

(Ancient Celtic Prayer)

Hidden God, whose depths are infinite, Help us shed our outer layers in this silence. Uncover the stranger that is within. Living on the surface, seeing only what is visible, can blind us toward the very thing we need to recognize. Rather than the condemnation we claim upon ourselves and others, guide us to deeper truths though which life emerges. Bring acceptance, clarity and peace up from the sacred chaos. Amen. —Prayer by Janet Salbert

If our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts, and He knows all things. ~ 1 John 3:20

"My life is a listening, His is a speaking. My salvation is to hear and respond. For this, my life must be silent. Hence, my silence is my salvation." ~ Thomas Merton, Thoughts in Solitude

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In Praise of Bread

Be gentle
When you touch bread.
Let it not lie
Uncared for - unwanted.
So often bread is taken for granted.
There is much beauty
In bread
Beauty
of sun and soil,
Beauty of patient toil.
Winds and rain have caressed it,
Christ often blessed it.
Be gently
When you touch bread.

O blessed Jesus,
give me stillness of soul in You.
Let Your mighty calmness reign in me.
Rule me, O King of Gentleness,
King of Peace.
~ Saint John of the Cross

The times when Jesus was not speaking words, when he was keeping silence, these too were words. He Himself is the Word, even when He is being quiet and still and small and vulnerable. He Himself is our home, whether He is speaking audibly or being quiet. The created world is temporal, He is eternal. The goal of all that He does for us, is to conform us to His Image. Even when he is being quiet. Don't be afraid of quiet.

Your sister in Christ,
Dawn Maureen

"Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me." ~ John 14: 1

Deep peace of the running wave to you,
Deep peace of the flowing air to you,
Deep peace of the quiet earth to you,
Deep peace of the shining stars to you,
Deep peace of the gentle night to you,
Moon and stars pour their healing light on you,
Deep peace of Christ, of Christ the light of the world to you,
Deep peace of Christ to you.

—Gaelic blessing

In returning and rest you shall be saved;,
in quietness and trust shall be your strength.

"It is only we who brood over our sins. God does not brood over them. God dumps them in the bottom of the sea." ~ Saint Benedict

"God is closer to us than water is to a fish." St. Catherine of Siena

" Internal quietness and clear sky summer days of the heart start when we trust our Lord more than we trust ourselves." ~ Bailey Brazier

He will come to us like rain. ~ Hosea 6:3

Isn’t that the way contemplation works, only with silent prayer the “ocean” is the presence of God, and the “surf” is the many subtle ways we discover or encounter God’s presence in our lives? When you go to the beach, you don’t have to make the surf happen. You just go there and enjoy it. It’s already there, and it is always available. So it is with the ocean of God’s presence. We are always on the shore of the ocean of God’s mercy. We stand and listen to the surf of divine silence. We are invited into the water, whether to stick a toe in timidly or to joyfully dive in, all the way. ~ Carl McColman

Dear Lord, When others tear me down, You lift my spirits. When all hope is lost, You are the one who gives me reason to dream again. I feel Your universal beauty and my heart opens to Your radiance. Thank You for the blessings You bestow upon me. ~Amen

Contemplative prayer is silence, the "symbol of the world to come" 12 or "silent love." 13 Words in this kind of prayer are not speeches; they are like kindling that feeds the fire of love. In this silence, unbearable to the "outer" man, the Father speaks to us his incarnate Word, who suffered, died, and rose; in this silence the Spirit of adoption enables us to share in the prayer of Jesus.

https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/catechism/index.cfm?recnum=6984

Focus on me. Not the storm. ~ Jesus

“Silence... springs from the same place in the universe where space is made, and breath, and appreciation.” Anne Lamott

Peace is more than just the absence of conflict.
Hope is more than just the absence of fear.
Silence is more than just the absence of sound.

~ Carl McColman

When you feel like you're drowning in life, don't worry. Your lifeguard walks on water.

"Be as you are ..."

Be still and know ...

"Grief is like the ocean, it comes in waves ebbing and flowing. Sometimes the water is calm, and sometimes it is overwhelming. All we can do is learn to swim."

"When you feel despised, imitate the kingfisher, who builds its nest on the masts of ships. That is to say, raise yourself up above the earth, elevate yourselves with your mind and heart to God, who is the only one who can console you and give you strength to withstand the trial in a holy way." ~ Saint Padre Pio

Silence IS about emptying. But it is not something to fear. Because the best friend of all is waiting to fill the silence. ~ Judith Costello

“Slay me though he might, I will wait for him,” he says in Job 13:15.

Job endures God’s silence through the first 37 chapters of the book. It’s important to remember that this was not mere silence amid the ordinary course of affairs—it happened during a period of tremendous pain and suffering in the life of Job, a time when he was in dire need of God. http://catholicexchange.com/when-god-is-silent

Dear Lord, I don't know who or what will cross my path today. But I do know that You are my Rock and You are my Shield and my Strong tower . Help me to fully anchor myself to You today. Teach me how to stand strong in You and choose only Your way today. More of you less of me .Help me walk by Your truth and not by my feelings. Help me to embrace anything that comes my way and have the wisdom to see even the challenges as an opportunity to see You at work and as an opportunity to see your face in others , in everyone I meet today . Thank You that You love me and nothing can ever take that away from me! Even if I fail today and fall short, You whisper Your unconditional sweet love deep into my soul and remind me that Your mercies are new every morning. What a blessing . Thank You for meeting with me today. For waking me with the sweet whisper of Your love? I hear you in every wave that crashes on the beach below . I hear your love sweetly singing to me in the song of the morning birds . I feel you in the gentle sunrise kissing my eyelids and the gentle breeze on my face reassures me I am not alone for you are always with me . Thank you Lord for always being right here with me . I love you and offer this day to you . More of you , less of me .Thank you for all my blessings Amen

~ Roma Downey's morning prayer for Jan 26, 2017

Pray for the wisdom you need to recognize when you’ve become dangerously tired – exhausted by life’s demands, to the point where you can’t hear God’s voice speaking to you. Accept God’s invitation to rest in His presence during solitude and silence.

http://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/how-to-meet-god-through-silence-and-solitude.html

Let silence be a refuge full of meaning, a rest from a noisy world

"It is the mourning that will know the joy of comfort (Matthew 5:4). It is the hungry and thirsty that will be satisfied (Matthew 5:6). Longing makes us ask, emptiness makes us seek, silence makes us knock (Luke 11:9)."

from: When God Seems Silent, by Jon Bloom"

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God doesn’t need us to speak aloud in order to hear us. When we pray from our hearts, we connect to the heart of God. And to the hearts of every other praying soul. ~ Debbi Geller

Pachelbel in the Garden ...

My soul waits for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning. ~ Psalm 130:6

For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. ~ 1 Corinthians 13:12

In solitude and silence you’re learning to stop doing, stop producing, stop pleasing people, stop entertaining yourself, stop obsessing — stop doing anything except to simply be your naked self before God and be found by him. http://www.soulshepherding.org/2005/08/solitude-and-silence/

Dear God,

Calm me that I may walk gently through this valley knowing that on the other side is my miracle that I will step into at Your appointed time.

Amen

Gentleness

Be gentle with yourself. You don't just live in this world or your home or your skin. You also live in someone's eyes. ~ Sanober Khan

Patience and Time

Teach me, my Lord, to be sweet and gentle in all the events of my life, in disappointments, in the thoughtlessness of others, in the insincerity of those I trusted, in the unfaithfulness of those on whom I relied. Let me forget myself so that I may enjoy the happiness of others. Let me always hide my little pains and heartaches so that I may be the only one to suffer from them. Teach me to profit by the suffering that comes across my path. Let me so use it that it may mellow me, not harden or embitter me; that it may make me patient, not irritable; that it may make me broad in my forgiveness, not narrow or proud or overbearing. May no one be less good for having come within my influence; no one less pure, less true, less kind, less noble, for having been a fellow traveler with me on our journey towards eternal life. As I meet with one cross after another, let me whisper a word of love to You. May my life be lived in the supernatural, full of power for good, and strong in its purpose of sanctity. Amen.

"Be done and home home
To the silence afterwards ...
The silence that lives in the grass
On the underside of each blade
And in the blue space between the
stones ..."

Rolf Jacobsen, The Silence Afterwards